Cabinet passes new wage bill

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared the new wage code bill which will ensure a minimum wage across all sectors by integrating four labour related laws.

The proposed legislation would benefit over four crore employees across the country. The draft bill was approved by the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Labour Code on Wages Bill will consolidate Minimum Wages Act, 1948; Payment of Wages Act, 1936; Payment of Bonus Act, 1965; and Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, official sources said.

The bill seeks to empower the Centre to set a minimum wage across all sectors in the country, and states will have to maintain it, too. However, states will be able to provide for higher minimum wage in their jurisdiction than fixed by the central government.

The bill is likely to be introduced in Parliament during the Monsoon Session which will conclude on August 11.

The new minimum wage norms would be applicable for all workers, irrespective of their pay. At present, the minimum wage fixed by the Centre and states are applicable to workers getting up to `18,000 pay per month.

Meanwhile, after the poor response to its Sovereign Gold Bonds scheme, the Union Cabinet raised the annual investment limit in it to 4 kg per individual from 500 gm and relaxed other norms. The target mobilisation under the scheme was `15,000 crore in 201516 and `10,000 crore in 2016-17. The amount so far credited is `4,769 crore.